Lecrae Moore, commonly known as Lecrae, is a Christian rap artist. He was raised by his mother on the south side of Houston and has lived in Denver,San Diego, and Dallas. He now resides in Memphis, Tennessee with his wife, Darrah and son, David. As a child, Lecrae had what was considered a normal life. His father left the family before his first birthday to "pursue his drug addiction." His neighborhood was filled with drugs, gangs, poverty, and violence. And hip-hop was the accepted way of expression. He says himself that he "struggled with love..." from growing up without his father, to dealing with his mother allowing her boyfriends to literally beat on him, to having his uncles and friends show him "love" by locking him in car trunks because he "deserved" it. In 1998, Lecrae finally got a chance to escape his neighborhood by going to an event called the Impact Movement .
Lecrae gives credit to a man named James White for giving him "the clearest Gospel presentation I've ever heard" at the Impact 98 conference in Atlanta, Georgia. At that conference, Lecrae realized that he "was in need," "empty" and that he "needed Jesus." At the age of 19, Lecrae got saved and went back to his college, the University of North Texas, with a printed version of his testimony to pass out on campus. From there, he teamed up with fellow Christian rap artist Trip Lee to start Reach Records . At the age of 25, Lecrae released his first album, Real Talk. He is signed to both Reach Records and Cross Movement Records. His lyrical work has received nods from Billboard's Gospel Albums chart with a number five position,iTunes Rap chart with a number three position, the Christian Music Trade Association's R&B/Hip-Hop chart with a number one position, two nominations at the GMA Dove Awards , for his song "Jesus Muzik " and his album "After The Music Stops", and several magazines, namely Rapzilla which praised Lecrae's style and "clever flows" that are straight to the point and his "delivery is very clear."
Unlike some people in the entertainment industry, Lecrae does much more than just rap. He uses his talents to reach those in the rough neighborhoods that he grew up in and in similar areas. Three weekends a month, Lecrae, whom friends call "LeCrezzy" or "Crayola," spends his time at a juvenile detention center in Dallas, Texas. When he's not hanging out with the 116 Clique (pronounced 1-1-Six Clique) he's in the club district of Dallas doing the "Great Commission." He is also founder and president of Reachlife Ministries, a program providing materials to pastors, youth ministry leaders, parents and churches that want to teach "biblical values to their kids." Lecrae uses his talents to rap on a controversial and sometimes offensive subject but that doesn't mean that he is all serious all the time. Those close to Lecrae can attest to his silliness, and so can viewers of REACHTV116 on YouTube. With quotes like "Hate Sin...Love Collard Greens" and "Hate Sin...Eat Chicken" Lecrae keeps himself humble by acting just like your best friend. He knows how to have fun and not let the Christian life make him too serious.
Lecrae has always been a rebel; from rebelling as a child by staying out late and using drugs in middle school, to rebelling against the current culture of today. As a rapper, as a Christian and as a man, Lecrae tries not to waste his life. He is aware that when people listen to his music, or any of his fellow artists' music, they might give him all the credit and compliments but that is not what he desires. At the end of the day, he wants “to digest Theology and spit it back out so the streets can digest it.” His entire purpose is to "point listeners in the direction of the Cross." He doesn't want fame; he's content with being relatively unknown outside the gospel circuit. He's unconcerned with possessions. Not too many times will you see him in a rose gold chain with huge diamond studs and a watch with a face bigger than a baby's head. "You can find him in the church, focused and alert, no suit and tie, jeans and a t-shirt." His legacy is not his son, but the people he has drawn to Christ. He didn't come from a background saturated in Jesus. He's not a pastor's kid, a bishop's son, or an elder's nephew. He's this kid born in Houston, raised all over the place, residing in Memphis and living to give God praise in every aspect of his life. He's not your average success story.He's just a guy who loves God.
Lecrae Moore, commonly known as Lecrae, is a Christian rap artist. He was raised by his mother on the south side of Houston and has lived in Denver,San Diego, and Dallas. He now resides in Memphis, Tennessee with his wife, Darrah and son, David. As a child, Lecrae had what was considered a normal life. His father left the family before his first birthday to "pursue his drug addiction." His neighborhood was filled with drugs, gangs, poverty, and violence. And hip-hop was the accepted way of expression. He says himself that he "struggled with love..." from growing up without his father, to dealing with his mother allowing her boyfriends to literally beat on him, to having his uncles and friends show him "love" by locking him in car trunks because he "deserved" it. In 1998, Lecrae finally got a chance to escape his neighborhood by going to an event called the Impact Movement .
Lecrae gives credit to a man named James White for giving him "the clearest Gospel presentation I've ever heard" at the Impact 98 conference in Atlanta, Georgia. At that conference, Lecrae realized that he "was in need," "empty" and that he "needed Jesus." At the age of 19, Lecrae got saved and went back to his college, the University of North Texas, with a printed version of his testimony to pass out on campus. From there, he teamed up with fellow Christian rap artist Trip Lee to start Reach Records . At the age of 25, Lecrae released his first album, Real Talk. He is signed to both Reach Records and Cross Movement Records. His lyrical work has received nods from Billboard's Gospel Albums chart with a number five position,iTunes Rap chart with a number three position, the Christian Music Trade Association's R&B/Hip-Hop chart with a number one position, two nominations at the GMA Dove Awards , for his song "Jesus Muzik " and his album "After The Music Stops", and several magazines, namely Rapzilla which praised Lecrae's style and "clever flows" that are straight to the point and his "delivery is very clear."
Unlike some people in the entertainment industry, Lecrae does much more than just rap. He uses his talents to reach those in the rough neighborhoods that he grew up in and in similar areas. Three weekends a month, Lecrae, whom friends call "LeCrezzy" or "Crayola," spends his time at a juvenile detention center in Dallas, Texas. When he's not hanging out with the 116 Clique (pronounced 1-1-Six Clique) he's in the club district of Dallas doing the "Great Commission." He is also founder and president of Reachlife Ministries, a program providing materials to pastors, youth ministry leaders, parents and churches that want to teach "biblical values to their kids." Lecrae uses his talents to rap on a controversial and sometimes offensive subject but that doesn't mean that he is all serious all the time. Those close to Lecrae can attest to his silliness, and so can viewers of REACHTV116 on YouTube. With quotes like "Hate Sin...Love Collard Greens" and "Hate Sin...Eat Chicken" Lecrae keeps himself humble by acting just like your best friend. He knows how to have fun and not let the Christian life make him too serious.
Lecrae has always been a rebel; from rebelling as a child by staying out late and using drugs in middle school, to rebelling against the current culture of today. As a rapper, as a Christian and as a man, Lecrae tries not to waste his life. He is aware that when people listen to his music, or any of his fellow artists' music, they might give him all the credit and compliments but that is not what he desires. At the end of the day, he wants “to digest Theology and spit it back out so the streets can digest it.” His entire purpose is to "point listeners in the direction of the Cross." He doesn't want fame; he's content with being relatively unknown outside the gospel circuit. He's unconcerned with possessions. Not too many times will you see him in a rose gold chain with huge diamond studs and a watch with a face bigger than a baby's head. "You can find him in the church, focused and alert, no suit and tie, jeans and a t-shirt." His legacy is not his son, but the people he has drawn to Christ. He didn't come from a background saturated in Jesus. He's not a pastor's kid, a bishop's son, or an elder's nephew. He's this kid born in Houston, raised all over the place, residing in Memphis and living to give God praise in every aspect of his life. He's not your average success story.He's just a guy who loves God.
Sources:
"Lecrae: Biography" Yahoo!shopping. Cyril Cordor. 23 Feb 2009. http://shopping.yahoo.com/p:Lecrae:1927973237:page=biography
"Lecrae Bipgraphy" AOL Music. Cyril Cordor. 23 Feb 2009. http://shopping.yahoo.com/p:Lecrae:1927973237:page=biography
"Lecrae Artist Profile" Lecrae Artist Profile|Biography and Discography|NewReleaseTuesday.com. 23 Feb. 2009. http://www.newreleasetuesday.com/artistdetail.php?artist_id=354
"Band Bio" 1 Cubed - LaCrae - Biography, Interviews and Music Interviews. 19 Feb 2009. http://www.1cubed.com/display.php?ID=316§ionID=26
"Lecrae - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 19 Feb. 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecrae
"Lecrae's DWYL Interview" Reach Videos. 19 Feb. 2009. http://reachrecords.com/videos/1701
"Reachlife Ministries" Reachlife Ministries - About. 23 Feb 2009. http://www.reachlife.org/about
"Exclusive Interview with Lecrae" video -Exclusive Interview with Lecrae - tangle.com. 23 Feb 2009. http://www.tangle.com/view_video.php?viewkey=17937bd4628e1198bc54
Extra Links:
LeCrae at work
Don't Waste Your Life video